Sweet Revenge
by cleotheo
Summary: After Hermione finds Ron cheating on her, Pansy offers her the chance to get revenge on her ex-boyfriend. Taking her up on the offer, Hermione sets out to get some payback on Ron, but she soon finds that getting back at Ron isn't the only perk to going along with Pansy's plan. In fact she might just end up getting something for herself out of the deal.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N – Welcome to my newest short story. It is 7 chapters in total, and updates will be Tuesdays and Thursdays.**

 **I want to dedicate this story to slytherinflower 26, who gave me the idea for the story. I just hope you like what I've done with your idea.**

 **And I hope everyone else enjoys this short little story.**

* * *

The Head Girl, Hermione Granger, squeezed the last of her Christmas presents into her bag and with a bit of a struggle managed to zip it up.

"Let's hope I haven't forgotten anything," she muttered to herself. It didn't feel as though she'd packed too much for the Christmas holidays, but it had been a tight squeeze to get everything into her bag.

Knowing she would make a final check later, Hermione left her bag on the bottom of the bed and headed out of the bedroom with the intention of paying a visit to Gryffindor Tower. As Head Girl, Hermione shared the Head Dorms on the third floor with the Head Boy, Draco Malfoy, but she still spent a lot of time up in Gryffindor Tower. After all, she was still a Gryffindor.

Making her way down to the common room, Hermione found Draco lounging on the sofa, reading a quidditch magazine. When she'd first discovered she would be sharing dorms with Draco she'd feared that it would be a terrible experience and would mar her final year at Hogwarts, but as it turned out it wasn't anything like she'd thought it would be. Surprisingly she and Draco had found they could work together with ease, and after agreeing to put the past behind them and make a fresh start, living together was no hassle. If anything, they'd even struck up a friendship, and it pained Hermione to admit it, but the conversations she could have with Draco were often more intellectual than any she could have with her other friends.

"Are you ready for the Christmas holidays?" Hermione asked Draco. The Hogwarts Express would be leaving the following morning, and Hermione knew from sharing dorms with Draco for the past couple of months that he was almost as organised as she was and would certainly be prepared for the trip home.

"I think so," Draco replied. "I sent my parents presents to the manor last week, and I've got everything ready here for a good time."

"Are you not going home for the holidays?" Hermione questioned with surprise. Even before she'd shared dorms with Draco she'd known how much of a big deal family was to the Malfoys, and she knew that Draco went home for most holidays.

"No," Draco answered with a shake of his head. "Father wrote to me last month asking if I minded staying at school. He wants to take Mother to Italy for the holidays. Apparently, some prestigious opera company is performing the exact same opera which they went to see on honeymoon, in the exact same venue they viewed it in, on Christmas Eve."

"Aww, that is so sweet," Hermione said with a smile. She never would have thought of Lucius Malfoy as the romantic type, but it was clear that he thought a great deal of his wife to organise such a romantic surprise.

"He may be a tough, ruthless bastard, but when it comes to mother he's a pussy cat," Draco chuckled. "Just don't tell anyone I ever said so. Father would disown me rather than admit he had a soft side."

"Your secret is safe with me," Hermione laughed. Another thing she'd discovered about Draco since they'd been living together was that when you got to know him, he was very open and had a good sense of humour. "So, what are you going to do for the holidays?"

"Stay here and party," Draco answered with a smirk. "When I mentioned I was staying for Christmas, almost all of my friends decided to stay as well. So, we're going to make the most of our final Christmas at Hogwarts."

Hermione couldn't help but smile at the Slytherins sense of friendship. They really were a tightknit bunch of friends, and Hermione knew they would stick together through thick and thin. She would like to think that if she'd been in the same position as Draco, her friends would have done and same and stayed at Hogwarts with her, but honestly, she doubted it. Her friends always went home for the holidays, and even though Hermione had once suggested Harry and Ron could go to her home for Christmas, the idea was shot down in flames. So, if Hermione wanted to spend the holidays with her friends, as she was planning on doing this year, she had to go the Weasleys home, The Burrow.

"Are you going home for Christmas?" Draco asked.

"Actually, I'm going to Ron's for the holiday," Hermione answered.

"Have fun," Draco replied, flashing Hermione a quick smile before burying his head back in his magazine before she noticed the distaste in his eyes at the mention of her idiot boyfriend, Ron Weasley.

Draco had never been a fan of Ron's, but he was even less of a fan now he was sharing dorms with Hermione and witnessed first-hand what a shoddy boyfriend he was to the bright and beautiful muggleborn witch. Of course, his opinions weren't helped by the fact he'd developed a crush on Hermione, but even without that he was convinced that he would dislike Ron and disapprove of him as a boyfriend. From what Draco had seen the relationship between Hermione and Ron was very one sided and Ron was only interested in what he could get. He certainly wasn't interested in Hermione and what would make her happy.

Unaware of Draco's train of thoughts, Hermione breezily said goodbye to the Head Boy and headed off to Gryffindor Tower. Upon entering Gryffindor Tower, Hermione couldn't see either her boyfriend or her best friend, Harry Potter. After briefly debating whether to just wait for them in the common room, she decided to go and check if they were in the boy's dorms. It was unlikely they were being organised and packing early rather than leaving it to the last minute, but you never knew, eventually Hermione's influence might rub off on them and they might realise it was better to be organised than to run around like blue arsed flies' hours before departure.

Hurrying up the staircase that led to the boy's dorms, Hermione pushed open the door and entered the seventh-year dorm room only to wish she hadn't. Guttural moans and cries filled the air and Hermione was greeted at the sight of a naked Lavender Brown writhing atop of a male figure on the bed directly opposite the door. The bed belonged to Neville Longbottom, and in the midst of her embarrassment, Hermione vaguely thought he and Lavender made a bizarre couple. But before her mind could totally process that it wasn't Neville under Lavender, the witch in question moved slightly and Hermione spotted a familiar mop of red hair.

"Ron," she whispered, frozen on the spot even though a second earlier she'd been about to turn and leave the bedroom.

"Hermione," Ron cried, bolting upright in the bed and pushing Lavender off him. "This isn't what it looks like," he pleaded, hopping out of bed, forgetting that he was still stark naked.

"It looks to me like you're shagging Lavender Brown," Hermione replied calmly, gesturing to Ron's bobbing penis. "Or did your clothes fall off by accident?"

"Hermione, please just listen to me," Ron pleaded, hurrying towards his girlfriend.

"Don't you dare touch me," Hermione seethed, stepping backwards. "Nothing can explain this, Ron. We're over."

Turning on her heel, Hermione ran from the boy's dorms, ignoring Ron's voice as he called after her. Bolting down the stairs, Hermione was almost knocked off her feet as she ran into Harry. Luckily, her friend had excellent reflexes and he steadied Hermione before she went tumbling to the floor.

"What's wrong?" he asked in concern, noticing that Hermione looked to be on the verge of tears.

"That bastard," Hermione spat.

"What bastard?" Ginny Weasley, who was at Harry's side asked.

"Your scumbag brother," Hermione replied. "I've just walked in on him shagging Lavender Brown."

"No, he wouldn't," Harry muttered, shaking his head in disbelief. "Tell me this is a misunderstanding, Ron," he said, suddenly spotting Ron emerging from the staircase. The only problem was, he could see that Ron had dressed in a hurry and looked totally flustered.

"There is no misunderstanding, Harry," Hermione spat, turning around so she was glaring at her now ex-boyfriend. "I know what I saw. He was cheating on me."

"It never meant to get that far," Ron whispered. "And it wouldn't have if you hadn't been so damn cold."

"You're blaming me?" Hermione questioned in outrage, her hurt being pushed aside in favour of anger.

"At least Lavender appreciates that I'm a man and I have needs," Ron said defensively. "I'm lucky if I get more than a snog from you."

"Don't you dare say this is my fault," Hermione hissed. "It is not my fault that you can't keep your trousers on."

"It's not like I get a chance to take them off with you," Ron shot back. "Hell, if I go to touch you, you run a mile. I'm sick of taking care of myself, Hermione."

"It looks like you don't have that problem anymore," Hermione spat. "Let your tart take care of your little problem in future. And I do mean little," she added maliciously, waggling her little finger at Ron. "We're done, and I never want to set eyes on you again."

"Fine by me," Ron snarled as he turned and headed back up to the boy's dorms, where Lavender was clearly still waiting for him.

"I'm sorry Hermione," Harry said sympathetically.

"It's not your fault Ron is an arsehole," Hermione replied with a sad smile.

"This isn't all Ron's fault," Ginny said, jumping to her brother's defence.

"Who else? He was the one who chose to cheat on me, Ginny," Hermione pointed out.

"But you do have to ask yourself why," Ginny argued. "Ron was right, Hermione. If you're going to be a prick tease, you can't be surprised when he looks for action elsewhere."

"I can't believe you're blaming me," Hermione muttered with a shake of her head. "I should not have to sleep with someone who professed to love me, just to keep them faithful."

"Even if you weren't ready for sex, there's other stuff you could do," Ginny retorted with a shrug. "You're his girlfriend, Hermione. It's your duty to keep Ron satisfied. At the very least you could have given him the odd blow job"

"If you really believe that, then I feel sorry for you, Ginny," Hermione said sadly. "If a man doesn't respect you enough to honour your choices regarding sex, then he's not worth having. Ron said he loved me. I shouldn't have had to sleep with him or give him sexual favours to keep him faithful. His love for me should have done that. And if sex was so important to him, and he wasn't prepared to wait for me to be ready, then he should have ended things. I am not the one in the wrong, Ginny, and I will not let you blame me for your brothers' loose morals."

"I can't believe you have just said that," Harry muttered to Ginny, giving her a look of disgust as Hermione turned and stalked out of Gryffindor Tower. "Hermione, wait," he called, running after his best friend and catching her outside in the hallway.

"I just want to be alone, Harry," Hermione said with a sad sigh. To be honest now she'd vented her fury all she wanted to do was curl up in a ball and cry, and she would rather do that in the privacy of her own room.

"You won't be coming for Christmas, will you?" he asked sadly.

"What do you think?" Hermione snorted. "Drop by the Head Dorms in the morning and I'll give you the presents."

"I can talk to them over the holidays," Harry offered. "I'm sure Ginny doesn't think half of what she said. And as for Ron, I'm sure that he'll regret what he's done."

"It really doesn't matter if he regrets it or not, it's too late to fix things," Hermione said. "We're finished and that's the end of it. Don't get yourself caught up in the middle of it, Harry. If you take sides you're going to lose one of us, and I don't want that to happen."

"Okay, but for the record the side I choose is yours," Harry said, wrapping his arm around Hermione. "Ron was wrong."

"Thanks Harry, I appreciate that," Hermione replied, giving her friend a peck on the cheek. "Now if you don't mind, I want to be alone."

"At least let me walk you back to the head dorms," Harry insisted.

Not having the energy to argue, Hermione allowed Harry to walk her back to the third floor, where the Head Dorms were located. When they entered the Head Dorms, Draco was still lounging in the front room and his greeting died on his lips when he spotted Hermione and could see how pale and shaken she looked.

"What's happened?" he asked on concern.

"I don't want to talk about it," Hermione replied quietly. "Thank you for walking me back, Harry. I'll see you tomorrow."

Making her way towards her bedroom, Hermione heard Draco asking Harry what was going on. She heard Harry's quick explanation, and she also caught Harry asking Draco to keep an eye on her over the holidays. Not that she cared as she didn't plan on leaving her room over the festive season. As far as she was concerned, Christmas was cancelled.


	2. Chapter 2

Word of what had happened in Gryffindor Tower between Ron and Hermione spread around the school within hours and by the time The Hogwarts Express departed carrying the majority of the students, everyone knew that the Head Girl and her boyfriend had broken up in spectacular fashion.

"I can't believe Weasley would be so stupid," Theo Nott remarked as the remaining Slytherins waved their friends off for the holidays. While most of Draco's friends had opted to spend Christmas with him, some of them hadn't been able to get out of family obligations.

"And for a slapper like Lavender Brown," Blaise Zabini snorted. "I've said it before, and I'll say it again, Weasley doesn't have the brains he was born with."

"The problem is, he's like most wizards and keeps his brains in his trousers," Pansy Parkinson said.

"Hey, don't tar us all with the same brush," Draco protested. "Not all of us cheat."

"We all know you're the loyal sort, Draco," Daphne Greengrass chuckled. "Your problem is, you get bored too easily. You're never with a girl longer than a couple of weeks."

"Is it my fault I haven't met the right witch yet?" Draco questioned with a shrug. It was true he'd had a few girlfriends since hitting puberty and discovering the joys of dating, but he'd always treated every witch he'd dated with respect and he'd certainly never cheated on any of them.

"We all know who the right witch is, and now she's free," Blaise remarked with a smirk. While the rest of the school was oblivious to the Head Boy's crush, all his friends knew about his feelings for Hermione.

"It's hardly the time to make a move," Draco pointed out as the Slytherins headed back into the castle and made their way down towards the dungeons. "I'm not going to take advantage of her. She's a mess, Blaise."

"Can you believe even I feel sorry for her?" Pansy questioned with a sigh. She'd never liked Hermione, but since Draco had been sharing dorms with her even Pansy had to admit she wasn't as annoying as she'd always thought.

"That's because despite appearances, you're not a complete and utter bitch," Draco told his friend. "You just hide your nice side really well."

"I have an image to maintain," Pansy sniffed haughtily as they entered the dungeons and settled down in the empty common room.

"Don't we all," Theo laughed. As Slytherins they naturally kept outsiders from seeing what they were really like and how deep the bonds between them ran.

"If Hermione is moping in the Head Dorms, does that mean the party is off?" Blaise asked.

"We could always move it down here," Daphne offered. While she'd never had a relationship end due to someone cheating on her, she had been broken hearted before and she knew that sometimes all you wanted was to be left alone to deal with the pain by yourself.

"Unless Hermione objects, I'd rather have it in the Head Dorms," Draco replied. "You never know, we might be able to persuade her to join us."

"Yeah, no-one should be alone at Christmas," Pansy agreed.

"Aww, how sweet Pans," Blaise cooed. "You're really getting in touch with your inner sweetheart today."

"Sod off, Zabini," Pansy growled, gifting him with a rude finger gesture.

"That's my girl," Blaise laughed.

Draco, Theo and Daphne laughed as Pansy repeated the gesture and turned her back on Blaise. However, it was all good-natured banter and within minutes the Slytherins were all happily planning their Christmas party and making plans for the rest of the holidays. All that needed to be sorted was the location of the party, and Draco would deal with that when he returned to the Head Dorms.

In the end, Draco spent the entire morning with his friends and returned to the Head Dorms after lunch. He was hoping that Hermione had ate and was feeling better, but when he entered the common room there wasn't any sign that the Head Girl had left her bedroom. Even that morning she'd just passed her presents out of the bedroom and asked him to give them to Harry.

"Hermione," Draco called as he gently knocked on her bedroom door.

"Go away, Malfoy," Hermione called back.

Draco winced at the use of his surname. As part of their fresh start they'd agreed to use each other's first names and aside from the couple of times they'd argued, neither of them had reverted to the use of surnames. So if Hermione was now calling him Malfoy, she must be in a terrible mood.

"I will, if you just open your door for a second," Draco replied.

Initially Draco thought he was getting no response, but then he heard shuffling and the door opened a crack. Through the small slit in the door, Draco could see that Hermione was wearing the same long sleeved baby blue pyjamas she'd been wearing that morning, and judging from the wild mess on her head she hadn't bothered to brush her hair.

"Well?" Hermione demanded impatiently.

"I just want to check you're okay," Draco said softly.

"I'm just peachy," Hermione returned sarcastically, before a look of regret instantly filled her eyes and with a sigh she opened the door properly. "Sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you."

"I get it," Draco assured her. "I'm sure right now, you don't want to set eyes on anyone of the male species."

"I'm not sure I want to set eyes on anyone at all," Hermione confessed. "I just want to be alone."

"That's your call," Draco said. "I just wanted to ask if you minded if I had my friends over tomorrow evening. We'd planned to hold a small party, but if it's going to disturb you, we can move it down to the dungeons."

"Don't let me spoil your plans, Draco," Hermione said. "Ron's already ruined my Christmas, don't let him ruin yours."

"You're welcome to join us," Draco offered. "I know you're not really friendly with my friends, but they would all be happy if you wanted to join in. And I promise you that no-one will so much as mention the Weasel."

"I appreciate the gesture, but I really don't think I'm up for a party," Hermione said. "But thank you Draco, it's nice to know not all teenage wizards are complete and utter dicks."

Draco had to chuckle at Hermione's description of Ron, and he couldn't help but think that he couldn't have described the redhead better himself. He just wished it hadn't taken Hermione having her heart broken for her to see Ron for what he truly was.

"Is there anything else?" Hermione asked, obviously eager to get back to her solitude.

"No," Draco answered with a shake of his head. "But if you want anything, just give me a yell. Even if you just want to rant about your bastard of an ex, I'd sit and listen. You don't have to be alone, Hermione."

"Thank you," Hermione said with a small smile. "But right now, that's exactly what I want."

"I won't disturb you any longer," Draco said as he backed away from Hermione's bedroom door.

A second later the door clicked closed and Draco wondered if he'd achieved anything. He'd let Hermione know he was there for her, but he honestly didn't know if she would take him up on his offer as a shoulder to cry on. For all he knew, she was going to spend the rest of the holidays holed up in her bedroom, moping over an idiot who didn't deserve one minute of her time.

Knowing there was nothing more he could do, Draco shrugged and headed back down to the common room. After spending the afternoon reading, and listening out in case Hermione needed him, he headed off to join his friends for dinner. As they ate he informed them that Hermione had said they could use the Head Dorms for their party, and that they were to carry on as normal.

"Will she be joining us?" Theo asked.

"I made it clear she was welcome, but I won't be holding my breath," Draco admitted, his disappointment evident for everyone to see.

"I have an idea," Pansy whispered to Daphne as Blaise and Theo tried to distract Draco by talking about what liquor they could get for the party.

"What sort of an idea?" Daphne asked.

"We're going to give Draco what he really wants for Christmas," Pansy replied with a smirk.

"And that is?" Daphne questioned, wondering just what her friend was up to.

"Hermione," Pansy answered.

"I very much doubt she's ready to move on," Daphne pointed out. "Even if she didn't love Weasley, which I think she did by the way, she would still be devastated by what he did. Anything that happened with Draco would be purely rebound. They could both end up hurt."

"Which is why we're going to get them together, without getting them together straight away," Pansy answered.

"I'm confused," Daphne muttered.

"Which is why I'm going to explain it to you," Pansy said, beckoning for Daphne to come closer as she whispered her idea.

"I guess that could work," Daphne conceded once Pansy was finished.

"It will, trust me," Pansy replied with a confident smile.

"Now you just need Hermione on board," Daphne said. "Draco will agree if it's what she wants. But how are you going to get her to agree?"

"Daphne honey, we're Slytherins for a reason," Pansy replied with a low cackle. "And we're going to appeal to Hermione's inner Slytherin. Even the Gryffindor Princess must have a little bit of a hidden Slytherin side. All we have to do is wake it up and then the games will begin."

 _ **0000000000000000000000000000000000000000**_

Unaware that Pansy was plotting on bringing her and Draco together, Hermione was engulfed with thoughts of Ron. It had been more than twenty four hours since everything had blown up with him, but she still couldn't get the image of him and Lavender out of her head. Every time she closed her eyes she saw them together, and then of course a replay of his pathetic excuses started to play in her head. And despite knowing what he'd claimed was wrong, and that she couldn't be held responsible for his choices, she still began to wonder if things would have been different if her relationship with Ron had been more sexual.

Ron had always tried to further the sexual side of their relationship, but it had been Hermione who had held back. It wasn't that she hadn't love Ron, or hadn't been attracted to him, but whenever they'd been together, it had never felt right taking the next step. She wasn't expecting some significant sign to tell her it was the right time, nor she was expecting some sort of romantic, perfect first time, but she did expect that when the time came to explore her sexuality she would feel comfortable with it. And the truth was, she'd never felt comfortable with Ron when things had taken an intimate turn.

But that still didn't give him an excuse to jump into bed with Lavender Brown, and it was a move that Hermione would never be able to forgive him for. If he'd wanted sex so badly, he could have just ended things with her and then moved on with Lavender. And yes, Hermione would have been hurt if he'd done that, but at least he wouldn't have betrayed her and broken her heart.

After spending all day moping in bed, Hermione finally decided that she was better than that. Padding into the bathroom, she peeled off her pyjamas and had a long, hot shower. Feeling refreshed she pulled on a pair of jeans and a jumper, tugged her boots on and picked up Ron's Christmas present that she hadn't included in the bag she'd sent to The Burrow with Harry.

Hermione had heard Draco leave the head dorms earlier so she wasn't surprised to find the common room empty as she passed through it. She also didn't run across him as she moved through the castle and out into the grounds of the castle. In fact she saw no-one as she made her way to The Black Lake and stood on the grassy verge.

For a long time Hermione just stood staring at the choppy waters of The Black Lake, Ron's unopened present in her hands. Slowly, she then raised the present and threw it into the depths of The Black Lake.

"Merry Christmas, Ron," she muttered, watching as the brightly wrapped present, which she had taken such care to pick, sunk into the dark, choppy waters.

Feeling slightly better, but still not at all in the festive spirit, Hermione turned and headed back into the castle. What she didn't know was that Pansy was about to provide her with not only the perfect way to get even with Ron, but the perfect way of moving on with her life and finding happiness elsewhere.


	3. Chapter 3

As Draco and his friends planned their Christmas party, the Head Boy kept checking with Hermione that she was okay with them using the Head Dorms. He also kept inviting her to join them, but she kept politely refusing. Even though she was up and dressed, she still wasn't in the party mood. While the Slytherins partied down below, she was planning on curling up with a book and then having an early night.

"No Hermione then?" Blaise checked when Draco came down from the bedrooms, dressed for the evening's festivities.

"No," Draco replied with a shake of his head. "Maybe she'll change her mind later."

"Maybe," Blaise replied, handing his best friend a drink. "Get that down you and let the fun begin."

It may have only been a party of five, but the Head Dorms were soon filled with music and laughter. And since the group were all friends, there was no awkward conversations or making small talk with people you didn't really like. It was just five friends enjoying an evening together.

About half an hour into the party, Pansy slipped away from the fun and making an excuse about needing the bathroom, she headed up to the top floor of the Head Dorms. Only instead of making use of the bathroom, she gently knocked on the Head Girl's door.

"I really don't want to join the party, Draco," Hermione said as she opened the door. "Pansy," she remarked, frowning at the sight of the raven haired witch.

"Hi Granger," Pansy replied with a small smile. "Can we talk?"

"Did Draco send you? Because I don't mean to be rude, but I'm not really in the partying mood," Hermione said.

"This isn't about the party," Pansy said. "I'm here to offer you the chance to get even with Weasley. Don't you muggles have a saying, don't get mad get even?"

"How can I get even with him?" Hermione asked in confusion. "We're not together so I can hardly cheat on him. Not that I believe in doing that sort of thing."

"Come on Granger, there has to be a part of you that wants to pay the bastard back for the way he treated you," Pansy urged.

"What exactly did you have in mind?" Hermione asked, intrigued by Pansy and what she was suggesting.

"Can we sit?" Pansy asked.

With a shrug, Hermione swung open her door and invited Pansy into her room. The Slytherin witch looked around briefly before pulling out the chair beside Hermione's desk and settling herself down.

"What is this about Pansy?" Hermione asked as she sat down on the bed. "In what world would you want to help me?"

"Believe it or not, I'm not a complete bitch," Pansy said with a shrug. "I do sympathise with what happened to you. I've never had it happen to me, but I think in your shoes I would want some form of revenge."

"And how would I achieve that?" Hermione asked. "Ron and I are over."

"Just because you're over, doesn't mean you can't hurt him," Pansy said wisely. "You're close to his family, aren't you? How do you think they're going to react when they find out what happened? Mark my words, he's going to come crawling back in the New Year, begging for your forgiveness."

"He could crawl over hot coals, and I still wouldn't forgive him," Hermione snorted.

"There it is," Pansy chuckled. "I knew that even the Gryffindor Princess had a vengeful side. Embrace your inner Slytherin, Granger. Make the worm suffer for disrespecting you."

"I'm still not sure what you think I could do," Hermione said.

"Picture the scene," Pansy began dramatically. "It's the New Year and Weasley comes back looking for forgiveness. Imagine his horror when he finds you're not sitting up in your room snivelling over him, but getting on with your life. Imagine the look on his face when he finds you entangled with the Slytherin Prince."

"Slytherin Prince?" Hermione queried with an arched eyebrow.

"One of Blaise's nicknames for Draco," Pansy replied with a dismissive wave of her hand. "That's not important now. Can't you just see it, Granger? If there's anyone who's going to get under your ex's skin, it's Draco. It'll kill Weasley to see you with Draco. Especially when it becomes clear the pair of you are hot and heavy and can't keep your hands off each other."

"If I wasn't ready to sleep with my boyfriend, what makes you think I'm going to hop into someone else's bed?" Hermione asked.

"I didn't say it had to be genuine," Pansy remarked with a smirk. "But if we work this right, we can hit Weasley where it hurts. And don't say you don't want payback, as I can see it in your eyes. You may act all perfect, but there's more to you than meets the eye, Granger."

"I admit the idea of hurting Ron is tempting," Hermione admitted. It felt petty to even think about plotting revenge, but Pansy had aroused her curiosity and she was definitely interested in exploring the Slytherin witch's idea.

"Then let us help you," Pansy urged. "With five Slytherins by your side, we can take down Weasley and make him feel as bad as he made you feel. What do you say, Granger, do you want to bring a cheating bastard to his knees?"

Hermione was quiet for a long time before she slowly nodded, a smirk appearing on the corner of her lips. "I do. I just don't know if this will work, Pansy."

"It will if we all put our heads together," Pansy assured her. "Come downstairs and we can get plotting. Come and embrace your inner Slytherin."

"Give me five minutes to pull myself together," Hermione replied. She may have been up and dressed, but she was hardly ready to socialise.

"Okay, but if you're not downstairs in ten minutes, I'm sending of the boys up to get you, and I won't let them take no for an answer," Pansy warned.

"You really want this, don't you?" Hermione chuckled.

"The chance to see Weasley humiliated? Hell yeah," Pansy replied with a wicked grin as she left Hermione to make herself presentable.

Returning to the common room, Pansy refrained from mentioning her conversation with Hermione, but she was relieved when less than five minutes passed before Hermione ventured down the stairs. After Pansy, Draco was the first to see the Head Girl and before Pansy could approach her, Draco was at Hermione's side.

"I'm pleased you came down," he said with obvious delight. "Do you want a drink?"

"That would be good," Hermione replied. "Pansy didn't mention I was coming down, did she?"

"What?" Draco turned to Pansy in confusion. "Is that where you disappeared to? You were convincing Hermione to join us?"

"Kind of," Pansy replied with a shrug. "She's here to discuss revenge."

"Revenge?" Theo questioned. "Revenge on who?"

"Weasley," Pansy answered. "We can help her get it."

"How?" Blaise asked.

"Sit down and I'll explain," Pansy explained as she stood in front of the fireplace and waited for everyone to settle down.

"She's like some sort of evil mastermind, about to unveil her latest scheme to us," Blaise remarked as everyone made sure their glasses were full as they sat in down in front of Pansy.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you the plan to take revenge on Ronald Weasley," Pansy began with a malicious smirk.

Pansy then repeated the plan she'd just mentioned to Hermione. How they were going to pay Ron back for his unfaithfulness by making it seem as though Hermione had moved on with Draco and the pair were enjoying a sizzling hot sex life.

"Is this what you want?" Draco asked Hermione.

"I never would have come up with this on my own, but I have to admit the idea of hurting Ron is very appealing," Hermione answered. "But I'll understand if you don't want to be part of it. After all, this isn't anything to do with you, and I don't want to use you."

"If this is what you want and you want to kick Weasley where it hurts, I'd be delighted to help," Draco replied. "In fact I'd love to bring the little bastard down a peg or two."

"But will it work?" Blaise questioned. "Don't get me wrong, the idea is genius in principal," he quickly added, sensing Pansy was going to argue. "Weasley will be pig sick to get back to school only to find his ex in Draco's arms. But will it work in the long term? All he needs to do is ask anyone whose been at Hogwarts over the holidays and they can confirm that nothing was going on prior to their return. And then there's afterwards. It's going to look suspicious if Draco and Hermione suddenly drop each other."

"Unless either of them objected, I figured it could be a long term plan," Pansy replied with a shrug. What she wasn't saying was that she was convinced that if the pair played the devoted couple for long enough, pretence would become reality and real romance would develop.

"And it would be easy to make Weasley think it's been going on over the holidays," Theo said. "All we have to do is start tonight. As far as everyone is concerned, tonight is the night, Draco and Hermione got together.

"But for Pansy's idea to really work, they would have to act all hot and heavy," Daphne pointed out. "Could they do that?"

"I don't know," Hermione admitted when all eyes turned to her. "I've never done anything like this before."

"And that is why we're all here to help you," Pansy said. "We can practice in private, until you're comfortable enough to perform in front of an audience. And in the meantime, we sow the seeds of a steamy romance between the pair of you."

"If you're uncomfortable, we don't have to do this," Draco said to Hermione.

"No, I want to," Hermione insisted. "I want to see the look on his useless face when he sees us together. I just don't know if I can make it convincing. How can I act as though I'm having a passionate fling with someone, when I've got very little experience in that department?"

"We can help you," Pansy offered as Hermione flushed at her admission. "Although the most important thing is that you're comfortable with Draco. As long as you trust him, all you have to is follow his lead and react to whatever he does."

"Let's give it a try," Hermione said with a nod. "When do we begin?"

"Tonight," Pansy replied. "You and Draco can get to know each other a bit better, and tomorrow you can go into Hogsmeade together. Don't worry, you don't have to be all over each other tomorrow," she said with a chuckle as Hermione's eyes widened in panic. "Tomorrow can just be an innocent date, but it can start the ball rolling. From now on when you step out of these dorms, the pair of you are a couple. And Draco, you make sure you act as though she's the most precious thing in your world. Treat her like she's a princess."

"Yes boss," Draco replied with a chuckle as Pansy announced it was time to get the party going again. "I think she's enjoying this a bit too much," he whispered to Hermione.

"Why though?" Hermione asked. "Why is she so keen on this plan?"

"Pansy's sore spot is cheaters," Draco confided. "Her father's a serial cheater, and he's broken her mother's heart more times than I can recall. Pansy hates him for being such a callous bastard, and she doesn't understand why her mother puts up with it. Anyone who knows Pansy wouldn't dare cheat on her, they know she would have their balls hexed off without a second thought. So I think her wanting to help you get revenge on Weasley is her way of dealing with her father's cheating."

"Whatever her reasons, I'm grateful," Hermione said. "I never would have thought of something like this, but I have to admit since she suggested it, I feel alive with excitement. It might be petty, but I want to see him crushed when he sees us together. But do you think it can work? Do you think we can be convincing?"

"I'm sure we can manage," Draco replied with a slight smile. "But are you ready for it, Hermione? We may not be going to do anything, but we are going to have to get pretty close to make this convincing. At the very least we're going to have to kiss."

"I'm sure kissing you won't be that bad," Hermione replied.

"Thanks for the compliment, are you sure you can spare it?" Draco laughed.

"If you want compliments, you're going to have to earn them," Hermione said, unable to stop herself from flirting with Draco. She just felt really comfortable with him and given what they were planning it felt natural to flirt.

"I'm sure I can manage that," Draco returned, flashing Hermione a teasing grin. "Now why don't we just have fun tonight and not think about what's going to happen. After all, this will work better the closer we are."

"I'll drink to that," Hermione said, picking up her glass. "Well, I would if I had a drink."

Grabbing Hermione's glass, Draco refilled it and proposed a toast. "To bringing down a cheating Weasel," he cried.

"Bringing down the Weasel," Theo and Blaise called in unison.

The girls also joined in the toast, and together with five Slytherins, Hermione celebrated the revenge she was about to take on her cheating ex-boyfriend. Ron was going to regret the day he cheated on her, and he would come to rue losing the best thing that had ever happened to him.


	4. Chapter 4

On the afternoon The Hogwarts Express returned at the end of Christmas break, Hermione was standing atop the Astronomy Tower watching the scarlet train pulling into Hogsmeade station. From so far away she couldn't see much, let alone any of the students disembarking, but she could see enough to know that the holidays were over and before long she would be coming face to face with her ex-boyfriend.

As she wondered how Christmas had gone at The Burrow, Hermione felt an arm snake around her waist and a pair of soft lips briefly brush against the side of her neck. Allowing her eyes to slide shut for a moment, she leaned back against the solid form of Draco and drew comfort from his embrace.

Even though they were alone, they still kept up the act of being a couple, which had been Pansy's idea to help Hermione not feel so self-conscious about being affectionate in public. And Hermione had to admit it had worked perfectly. Now it felt natural to be constantly in Draco's arms and to be physically close to him all the time. Of course when there was anyone else around, Draco was even more affectionate, and even a bit territorial, but Hermione knew it was just his way of reminding people that she was his.

"You're not having second thoughts, are you?" Draco checked. He had to admit he was thoroughly enjoying playing the part of Hermione's boyfriend, he only wished it was real and that when he and Hermione acted all lovingly, she felt what he felt.

"Hell no," Hermione snorted fiercely. The plan for revenge had unlocked her inner Slytherin as Pansy called it, and now Hermione was looking forward to bringing Ron down. "This is what I want, Draco."

"Good, because I'm looking forward to the fireworks tomorrow morning," Draco chuckled.

"The plan will work, won't it?" Hermione asked, turning around to face Draco. "What if Ron hears about us before breakfast tomorrow?"

Together with the rest of the Slytherins, Hermione and Draco had devised a plan to make sure Ron's realisation that Hermione had moved on would take place in public, and be very dramatic. And even though they had discussed putting their plan into action the night everyone returned from their Christmas break, they'd decided for the morning after instead. And then they had the rest of the weekend to rub salts in Ron's wounds and show him once and for all that he'd lost Hermione for good.

"Aside from our group, no other seventh years stayed for Christmas, and I can't see any of the younger students mentioning us to Weasley," Draco answered. "But I guess if they do, he'll turn up at the Head Dorms creating a scene."

"And what if that happens?" Hermione asked, already feeling disappointment that their plan might not work the way they'd planned.

"We can still carry on with our original plan, but it might not have the same effect," Draco replied. "But I'd bet that Weasley will still be oblivious by tomorrow morning. In fact, he'll probably be champing at the bit to see you, which was why we decided to wait. But I guess we can move our plan forward until tonight."

"Let's stick with what we've decided," Hermione said. "Although what about Harry? Unless he finds out about us, I can't see Ron coming to the Head Dorms, but Harry might. He'll think it's strange that I'm not going to be at dinner."

"If he comes to the Head Dorms, I'll say you're not well and you'll see him at breakfast," Draco replied. "Although, unless we want to risk bumping into anyone, we should be getting back to the dorms."

"You know, you don't have to stay with me this evening," Hermione said as they made their way down the winding staircase in the Astronomy Tower. "You can go and have dinner with your friends."

"And leave my girlfriend?" Draco questioned with an arched eyebrow. "I don't think so, Hermione. You're stuck with me."

"I couldn't have a better fake boyfriend," Hermione laughed, giving Draco a peck on the cheek and hurrying down the rest of the stairs, missing the wistful look that briefly marred Draco's features before he shook it off and caught up with her.

Returning to the Head Dorms, Draco called for one of the House Elves to bring their food to them, and the pair had a nice dinner together. Not once did they talk about their plan and what would be happening the following day. Instead they kept the conversation light and just enjoyed each other's company. Even though their romance was fake they both genuinely enjoyed spending time with each other, and it wasn't a hardship for either of them to get so close.

After dinner the pair settled on the sofa together with their books, Hermione's feet in Draco's lap. Sadly, their peace was interrupted by a knock on the door. Not knowing who it was, Draco answered the door, only to find Pansy and Blaise on the other side.

"Is there a problem?" Hermione asked when Draco's friends entered the room.

"No, we just thought you would want an update on Weasley," Blaise replied.

"He doesn't know, does he?" Draco checked.

"Of course not," Pansy said with a snort. "He'll be able to ask around the people who were here at Christmas and find your romance began over the holidays, but no-one who was here would put themselves out to tell him the news."

"Although I would say since the pair of you weren't at dinner, those who know about you are waiting for the fireworks when Weasley finds out," Blaise added.

"Are we going to get fireworks?" Hermione checked. "What if he's moved on over the holidays? What if he doesn't care who I'm with?"

"Even if he has moved on, he'll care," Pansy predicted. "For Weasley it's all about his ego. He won't be able to stand the fact you wouldn't have sex with him, but you've jumped straight into a sexual relationship with Draco."

"I agree with Pansy," Blaise said. "He'll react tomorrow morning. Although I wouldn't say he's moved on. Brown was clearly trying to act the part of his girlfriend, but he kept shrugging her off."

"And he couldn't keep his eyes away from the door," Pansy added. "He was waiting to see you, Hermione."

"And what fun he'll have when he does see you," Blaise cackled. "I can't wait until tomorrow morning."

"Are you ready for tomorrow?" Pansy asked Hermione. Even though the idea had come about as a way of bringing Draco and Hermione together, Pansy had come to like Hermione and she really wanted her to get her own back on the scumbag who had broken her heart.

"I think so," Hermione answered. "But do you think I'm ready? Can I really pull this off, Pansy?"

Over the last couple of weeks, Hermione had been overwhelmed by the support the Slytherins had given her, Pansy and Daphne in particular. Both girls had played a big part in helping her get comfortable with public displays of affection, and they'd both given her plenty of confidence and some advice on how to be comfortable in her own skin and appreciate her sexuality.

"You're ready for this, Hermione," Pansy assured the Gryffindor witch. "You and Draco have great chemistry, and no-one seeing you together would ever believe it was all an act."

"But will they believe we're having sizzling hot sex?" Hermione questioned. "After all, that's what we want Ron to believe."

"He'll believe it," Pansy vowed. "Just do as we planned, and there won't be anyone in that Great Hall who'll doubt that the pair of you are shagging the living daylights out of each other."

"I hope we're as convincing as you think," Hermione chuckled.

"Oh, you are," Blaise remarked. Even though he knew Draco had genuine feelings for Hermione, he was beginning to suspect that the feeling was mutual and Hermione cared more for Draco than she realised.

Draco shot Blaise a warning look, feeling that his best friend was going to let his mouth run away with him and say something he shouldn't, but before Blaise had a chance to say anything there was another knock on the door.

"That might be Harry," Hermione said.

"Don't worry, I'll get rid of him without making him suspicious," Draco promised. "But just in case he insists on coming in, maybe you should make yourself scarce."

Draco waited until Hermione had disappeared up the stairs before he opened the door, and sure enough he found Harry waiting outside of the Head Dorms.

"Potter," Draco greeted, making no move to allow the Gryffindor into the room.

"Malfoy," Harry returned. "I'm here to see Hermione. She wasn't at dinner."

"No, she wasn't feeling well," Draco lied. "She's spent most of the afternoon in bed."

"Is it serious?" Harry asked in concern. "Has she been to see Madam Pomfrey?"

"She's just a bit under the weather," Draco replied. "But she did say that if you called round to tell you she's sorry not to see you today, but she'll see you tomorrow. Unless you want to get her out of bed?"

"No, I don't want to bother her if she's not feeling great," Harry said. "But how is she other than feeling ill? She didn't spend the whole holidays moping, did she?"

"And let Weasley ruin her Christmas?" Draco snorted. "I won't deny she was devastated by what happened, but she's strong. She's not going to let that loser bring her down."

"Good for her," Harry said, the hint of a smile on his face. "If you see her tonight, tell her I called round and I'll see her tomorrow. And Malfoy, thanks for keeping an eye on her."

"It was my pleasure," Draco returned with a slight smirk as he said goodnight to Harry and shut the door.

A couple of seconds later, Hermione emerged from the upstairs, a pensive look on her face.

"What's wrong?" Draco asked.

"I'm going to have to lie to Harry," Hermione whispered. "I was so focused on getting my own back on Ron, I forgot to think about Harry. I'll be lying to my best friend, and he doesn't deserve that."

"Do you want me to go and get him back?" Blaise asked.

"No," Pansy said, jumping in before Hermione could reply. "I don't mean to be rude, Hermione, but we don't know if we can trust Potter. He seemed to be sympathetic to you, but that doesn't mean he'll support your idea to get revenge on Weasley."

"Pansy's right," Draco said softly, taking hold of Hermione's hand and gently pulling her down onto the sofa next to him. "We could tell him, and he could go running right back to Weasley. I guess if you wanted, you could also tell him the truth after tomorrow morning. But even then, if he tells Weasley, the revenge in ruined."

"I guess I could wait and see how he reacts tomorrow," Hermione mused. "I just don't like lying to him."

"It won't be forever," Draco assured Hermione. "Just until you've got your own back on Weasley."

"I suppose," Hermione agreed with a nod.

If she thought Harry would agree with what she was doing, Hermione wouldn't have hesitated in telling him their plan, but the truth was, she didn't know how he would react. Until Ron had broken her heart, Hermione herself wouldn't have considered doing such a thing herself. But here she was, involved in a scheme to get payback on Ron and she was loving every minute of it.

Although she had to admit a big reason she was enjoying herself was down to Draco and his involvement. Hermione wasn't quite ready to admit it to herself, but she was definitely coming to think of Draco as more than a friend. If she was brutally honest with herself, she would admit that she was far more comfortable with Draco than she'd ever been with Ron. And even though everything they'd done had been fake, it had aroused her far more than anything she'd done with Ron. It could be so easy to slip and for pretence to become reality, if only Hermione would admit to herself that she had feelings for Draco.

"We should be getting back," Blaise suddenly announced. "We don't want to be tired for the big day tomorrow."

"Get a good night's rest, because tomorrow it's show time," Pansy said with a devious grin, hardly able to wait until the following morning when Ron Weasley would get the shock of his miserable little life.


	5. Chapter 5

Ron returned to Hogwarts feeling pretty ashamed of himself. Over the holidays he'd had to endure his families reactions over what had occurred just before the end of the previous term. Needless to say his family had been disgusted with his actions, and Ron had come to see how much in the wrong he'd been. He'd also come to realise how much Hermione meant to him, and he returned to school determined to make amends and win her back.

Although that was easier said than done, as no sooner had Ron arrived back at Hogwarts then Lavender made it clear that she was up for carrying on where they'd left off the previous term. Even though it was Hermione he had feelings for, Ron had to admit he was tempted by Lavender's offer as when he was with her, he could have all the sex he wanted. And to be perfectly honestly, it was the sex that had driven him into Lavender's arms in the first place. It wasn't as if he'd fallen in love with her, it was just that she'd been offering him something that Hermione wasn't.

"Don't blow it again, Ron," Harry advised when Ron confided in him how torn he was over Lavender's offer. "I don't even know if you can make things right with Hermione, but you certainly won't be able to if you're even thinking of jumping back into Lavender's bed. And I'm warning you now, if you hurt Hermione again, I will kill you."

"What happened to being friends with us both and not taking sides?" Ron pouted. The neutral stance was one Harry had taken all Christmas break, and he'd refused to be torn between his two best friends.

"That still stands, but only if you behave," Harry replied. "It would be the same if Hermione had been the one caught messing around with someone else. You're both my best friends, Ron, and I don't want to see either of you hurt."

"I won't hurt her again," Ron vowed. "In fact, once I've won her back I'm going to make sure she's the happiest witch in the school. I will do whatever this takes to make it right."

"Just remember you might have to have patience," Harry advised. "Hermione was devastated by what happened, she won't forgive you overnight."

"Do you think that's why she wasn't as dinner last night?" Ron asked. He had been hoping to see Hermione the day they returned, but she hadn't been at dinner and when Harry had gone to see her, she'd supposedly been ill.

"Malfoy said she was ill, and I don't see why he would lie for her," Harry replied with a shrug. "But I guess we'll find out today. If she doesn't turn up at breakfast then we know something else is going on."

"Do you think a public apology will help win her over?" Ron asked as the boys headed down to the common room, where they were due to meet Ginny and head down to breakfast.

"I don't know, it might draw more attention to the pair of you," Harry replied. "I know everyone knows what happened, but I doubt Hermione would appreciate a public reminder. Try and catch her on her own to apologise."

Ron thanked Harry for his advice, and mentally composing an apology he accompanied his best friend and sister down to breakfast. Since they'd arrived back from Christmas break on a Friday, they had the whole weekend ahead of them and breakfast was a casual affair. But with it being the first full day back at school, The Great Hall was packed with students catching up with friends and sharing stories of their Christmas holidays.

"I don't see Hermione," Ron remarked as he, Harry and Ginny sat down at the Gryffindor table.

Ron did briefly wonder if he should go and ask the Head Boy how Hermione was, but he wasn't keen on heading over to the Slytherin table. Draco was already at his table, holding court with his band of friends, and just the sight of the Slytherins lording it over everyone made Ron fell sick. Besides, he and Draco had never liked each other and he wouldn't put it past the blond wizard to make him look like a fool in front of everyone.

"Just have some breakfast, Ron," Ginny advised. Personally she didn't think that Ron was doing the right thing trying to win back Hermione as in her opinion they weren't very well suited, but it wasn't her place to say anything so she was keeping quiet.

As Ron started to pile his plate with food Lavender arrived for breakfast with her best friend, Parvati Patil and the two witches settled down opposite Ron, Harry and Ginny. Despite Harry's advice, Ron couldn't help himself smiling back at Lavender when she greeted him warmly. However, his attention was quickly taken away from his lover by the appearance of his ex-girlfriend.

"Wow," Ron whispered to himself, unable to take his eyes off Hermione.

He'd been preparing himself for a broken Hermione, but what he was faced with was a witch who was positively glowing. Hermione's long brunette hair hung around her shoulders in gentle curls, she was wearing a pair of fitted black trousers and a deep purple top which hung off her right shoulder. And more importantly, she didn't look like a witch who was losing any sleep over the boyfriend who had broken her heart.

Ron did wonder if Hermione was just putting on a brave face in front of the rest of the school, but before he had a chance to whisper as much to Harry, he realised that Hermione wasn't heading in their direction. Instead of coming directly down the hall to where the Gryffindor table was located, she'd turned to the right and was making her way to the table at the far end of the Great Hall – the Slytherin table.

As if Ron wasn't confused enough by Hermione approaching the Slytherin table, he was downright gobsmacked when he realised that she was making her way towards the head of the table, where the Head Boy had set up court. By the time Hermione reached Draco, Ron couldn't take his eyes off his ex-girlfriend, and his mouth gaped open in total shock when she elegantly perched herself on his lap. When Draco's arm snaked around Hermione's waist, Ron began to splutter in shock.

"What? How? What?" he gasped, unable to form a full sentence.

However, Ron got no answer as everyone else around him were glued to the sight of Hermione sitting in Draco Malfoy's lap as though it was an everyday occurrence. Although weirdly enough, none of the Slytherins seemed to be puzzled by her presence as over on the Slytherin table breakfast was carrying on as normal.

"What is going on?" Ginny mused as Draco moved Hermione's hair to one side, exposing her shoulder.

Seconds later it became clear why he'd moved her hair when he began to pepper her shoulder and neck with kisses. A couple of times his lips even moved up to her ear, and he clearly whispered something to her as Hermione kept giggling and smiling. More than once she even turned her head and the pair shared a knowing look.

"This isn't happening," Ron muttered, closing his eyes in the hopes that he was dreaming and that none of this was really happening.

Sadly for Ron, it was happening and when he opened his eyes, Hermione was still settled on Draco's lap as the pair enjoyed breakfast with his friends. Still not quite able to believe his eyes, Ron looked around the Great Hall and found virtually everyone was entranced by the head students display. However, there were a few people dotted around who seemed oblivious to what was happening over on the Slytherin table. Two of those people were two fifth year wizards sitting a little way down the Gryffindor table.

"Hey," Ron hissed at the pair. "Why isn't this bothering you?" he asked, jerking his head towards the Slytherin table.

"It's old news," one of the wizards said with a shrug, barely glancing over at the head students.

"Old news?" Ron repeated with a frown. "What do you mean, it's old news?"

"We were at Hogwarts over the holidays," the second boy informed Ron. "They got together then. They've been inseparable all holidays."

"Rumour has it they even celebrated New Year in Hogsmeade with the other Slytherins," the first wizard added.

"Are you saying that Hermione is dating Draco Malfoy?" Harry checked as beside him Ron turned so pale he worried that his best friend might pass out from the shock.

"Isn't it obvious?" the second boy laughed. "Just look at them. They can't keep their hands off each other."

Following the younger wizards advice to look at the head students, Harry and Ron turned their attention back to the Slytherin table just in time to see Draco feeding Hermione a slice of strawberry. There was something very intimate about the way he kept feeding her pieces of fruit, and Harry turned away, feeling like a voyeur. However, Ron couldn't have turned away if his life depended on it. Even though it was physically painful to watch Hermione with Draco, he couldn't tear his eyes away from the head students.

Although moments later, Ron wished that he had been able to do just that. After being fed by Draco, Hermione decided to return the favour. Only instead of feeding him fruit, she picked up a sliver of pancake, dripping with golden syrup. As she fed Draco the pancake, his tongue snaked out to lick the syrup from her fingers and he even sucked on one digit. All the time his grey eyes were boring into Hermione's, and the pair looked lost in one another. As she repeated the process, and again Draco's tongue lapped at her fingers, Ron was distracted by a slight moan from Parvati.

"I think that may the hottest thing I've ever seen," Parvati confided.

"I don't know about hot, more like disgusting," Lavender snorted. "Come on, they're practically dry-humping over there. Behaviour like that belongs in a bedroom, not a breakfast table."

At the mention of a bedroom, Ron felt his heart contracting and as he watched, Hermione leaned towards Draco and licked a bit of syrup from the corner of his mouth. Even though everything he'd witnessed earlier should have been enough to alert him to what was happening, it was this final act that caused realisation to dawn on Ron. Suddenly as clear as day he could see that Hermione and Draco were sleeping together. Even though he was halfway across the room, he could feel the sexual tension bubbling, and their display was of a couple totally and utterly hot for each other.

"Bitch," he swore, seeing red as he jumped to his feet. "Hey Malfoy," he yelled, storming over towards the Slytherin table. "Get your hands off my girlfriend."

"Excuse me?" Draco drawled, arching an eyebrow at Ron as the redhead charged towards them.

"Get your filthy paws off Hermione," Ron hissed, vaguely away that Ginny and Harry had chased after him and Harry was trying to calm him down.

"This has nothing to do with you Ron," Hermione said calmly, making no move to get out of Draco's lap. "Go away."

"I will not go away," Ron spat. "Is this some form of payback? I made a mistake, so you go and shag the lowest form of life you could find?"

"Be careful what you say, Weasley," Draco warned in a low, menacing voice.

"I can handle this, Draco," Hermione said as she rose up from Draco's lap and faced Ron. "Tell me Ronald, just what has this got to do with you? You are not my boyfriend anymore."

"I could be," Ron argued. "I made a mistake with Lavender. I didn't mean to sleep with her."

"How can you not mean to sleep with someone?" Hermione scoffed. "Did you accidently lose your clothes, and did she accidently lose hers? And then what happened, did you fall over and accidentally end up inside of her? Be a man, Ron, and admit the truth. You cheated on me because I wouldn't fall into your bed."

"Yet you've fallen into his," Ron spat. "I loved you Hermione, but he doesn't. He probably views you as a conquest. I bet when your back is turned he brags to all his friends how he deflowered the frigid Gryffindor ice-queen."

With a low growl, Draco sprung up behind Hermione and before anyone could react, he drove his balled up fist directly into Ron's nose. Ron staggered back with a cry, and only Harry's quick reflexes kept him upright. Pushing himself away from Harry, Ron charged at Draco but the Slytherin was ready for him and before Ron could land a punch, he found himself treated to a second encounter with Draco's fist. Only this time, Harry couldn't save him as he went sprawling to the floor.

"Speak like that about Hermione again, and it won't just be a bloody nose I give you," Draco vowed.

"You violent monster," Ron spat, staggering to his feet, blood dripping from his nose. "And this is who you prefer to me?" he demanded of Hermione.

"I prefer someone who is loyal and would never cheat on me," Hermione replied. "You had your chance, Ron, and you blew it. I had been planning on giving you an extra Christmas present this year. I was going to give myself to you."

"And instead you gave yourself to Malfoy," Ron spat. "Talk about being a tart. All the time we were together, you would hardly let me touch you. Yet you're virtually shagging Malfoy on the table in front of the entire school after just a few days together. I have only one thing to say to you, Hermione. You're a slapper with no taste, and I'm better off without you."

"And you Ronald Weasley are a no-good cheating scumbag with the morals of an alley cat," Hermione hissed as she pulled out her wand. "And no self-respecting witch needs someone like you in their life. I want to thank you for cheating on me and showing me your true colours. And I have a little present for you."

With a sweet smile, Hermione raised her wand and sent a stinging hex at Ron's crown jewels. Clutching his nether regions, Ron began to hop from foot to foot, crying out in pain. As he did so, laughter began to ring out around The Great Hall, and several of the girls shouted their approval of Hermione's way of dealing with Ron.

With Ron still howling in pain and trying to alleviate the stinging in his trousers, Hermione turned to Draco and flashing him a triumphant grin, she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a searing kiss. As Draco hungrily retuned the kiss, his friends began to cheer and within seconds most of the students were also cheering on the head students. After all, it had been a thoroughly entertaining morning, and there wasn't many people who didn't think that Ron hadn't gotten exactly what he deserved. Revenge was sweet, and Hermione had just shown that it was good to embrace your Slytherin side now and again.


	6. Chapter 6

Hermione had to admit to having some last minute second thoughts over the plan to get revenge on Ron. Pansy and Daphne had visited the Head Dorms early to help her get ready, and to make sure she was looking her best, but then she'd been left alone to wait for the perfect time to make her entrance into the Great Hall. It was during the time alone that Hermione had wondered if they were doing the wrong thing, but then when she thought about what Ron had done to her, and how hurt she'd been by his actions, she decided that a bit of payback would be good for him.

To be honest, she still wasn't sure of the plan when she entered the Great Hall, but once she was settled at the Slytherin table and Draco had whispered a few encouraging words in her ear, she found herself enjoying the act. Although if she was being completely honest, it was starting to feel less and less like an act. She'd been able to feel how their display had affected Draco, and she would be lying if she said she wasn't aroused by the seductive way Draco had licked golden syrup from her fingers.

But before Hermione had been able to think too deeply about her growing feelings for Draco, Ron had approached them and predictably had kicked off. The ensuing showdown had let Hermione get several things off her chest, and she felt a sense of triumph by the time Ron was hopping around clutching his nether regions following her stinging hex. Elated by her victory, Hermione had reacted instinctually and kissed Draco for all she was worth. It was only when the cheers and clapping penetrated her senses that she realised everyone was watching their rather passionate display.

"Sorry," she whispered as they final broke apart.

"Don't be," Draco returned with a slight smirk.

Suddenly realising that while Ron had reacted to her display with Draco, Harry hadn't uttered a word, Hermione turned around to where her friend was still standing, watching events with wide eyes. Ginny was standing beside Harry, and Hermione could see instantly that she wasn't at all impressed with what she'd seen.

"Bitch," Ginny spat once she knew she had Hermione's attention. "You've done this to deliberately hurt Ron."

"This isn't about Ronald," Hermione lied with a shrug. "It's about me moving on with my life."

"It's about you being a nasty bitch," Ginny retorted. "This is all your fault you know. You were with Ron for months, and you kept him at arm's length, but you're with Malfoy for days and you're hopping straight into his bed."

"It's not about the length of time I've been with someone, it's about how I feel about them," Hermione replied. "I wasn't ready with Ron, but yet he wouldn't let the subject drop. But Draco has never pressurised me into doing anything I wasn't ready for."

"Of course he didn't have to pressure you, he no sooner looked at you then you were dropping your knickers for him," Ginny scoffed.

"Be careful what you say, Red," Draco warned in a low voice. "I won't stand for people insulting my girlfriend."

"Well then you should have thought twice before you got involved with such a conniving little slapper," Ginny spat. "You know Hermione, Ron is far better off without you. He's worth ten of you."

"I rather think it's Hermione's whose worth ten of Weasley," Draco drawled. "After all, she isn't the lying, cheating scumbag. That would be your rat bastard of a brother."

"Leave it Ginny," Ron said, grabbing his sister by the arm as she made to charge at Draco. "They're not worth it. I'm done with Hermione. I've got a witch who actually cares about me in Lavender. I'd rather be with her anyway."

"But does she want to be with you?" Draco chuckled, aware that Lavender had approached the group and had been hovering on the outskirts of the drama for some time.

Not realising Lavender was anywhere near them, Ron whirled around only to be slapped in the face by his irate lover. Spluttering in shock, he turned back to Lavender only for her to hit him a second time.

"You Ronald Weasley, are the lowest form of scum," she hissed angrily. "How dare you call what we shared a mistake. A mistake is something that happens once, not several times over the course of several weeks. You knew exactly what you were doing when you climbed into my bed. And when you were with me, you never gave Hermione a second thought. Yet, here you are crawling back to her when she's clearly moved on. Although good on you Hermione, you really weren't missing much with Ron."

"It was clearly good enough for you to go back for more," Hermione said quietly. "Or were you just sleeping with Ron because you've never liked me?"

"I am sorry, Hermione," Lavender apologised. "It wasn't about hurting you. I liked Ron, and I thought he liked me."

"I accept your apology, but I can't forgive you," Hermione said. "You knew what you were doing, both of you did. Neither of you gave me a second thought, and now I'm not giving either of you a second thought. You can do what the hell you like together. I don't care. I've moved on."

"Good for you," Harry said, speaking for the first time.

"Harry," Ron hissed, glaring at Harry as though he'd personally broken his heart.

"I'm sorry Ron, but I warned you about hurting Hermione again," Harry said. "There was no need for half of the things you said to her. It was just cruel, and you had no right. You broke your relationship with Hermione, and it's really none of your business who she gets involved with."

"Even if it's Malfoy?" Ron whined, not able to believe Harry approved of her new relationship.

"Even Malfoy," Harry confirmed. "It's none of your business Ron, so I suggest you leave her alone. Maybe in time Hermione will find it in her to forgive you, but for now I think it's best for all concerned if you keep away from each other."

"I couldn't have said it better myself, Mr Potter," Albus Dumbledore remarked from behind the students.

Throughout all the drama, no-one had given the Professors a second thought, but they'd been witness to everything. To be honest none of them were entirely comfortable with all the talk of sex, but they were well aware that the older students were all seventeen and there was no way of banning them having sexual relations. Neither were they impressed with the couple of displays of violence, but none of them could argue that Ron hadn't deserved the treatment he'd received from his ex-girlfriend.

"In fact, I think we should all go our separate ways and pretend this incident never happened," Dumbledore continued. "Because of the circumstances, I will overlook the violence just this once. But if anything like this happens again, you will all be punished. Is that understood?"

"Yes Professor," Hermione answered politely.

"Oh, and Miss Granger and Mr Malfoy, I am trusting you as Head Students to be responsible and to set a good example for the younger students," Dumbledore said. "Perhaps in the future you could save your affection for one another for the privacy of your dorms."

"Yes Sir," Draco said with a smirk that implied he wasn't planning on changing how he treated Hermione in public.

With a slight shake of his head, Dumbledore urged everyone to either finish breakfast or leave the Great Hall, before returning to the Professors table. While he didn't expect a repeat of the morning's activities, especially as he suspected part of the provocativeness was for Ron's benefit, he wasn't naïve enough to believe that the Head Students wouldn't carry on in the same loved-up fashion. After all, they'd been virtually inseparable all holidays, and he doubted the start of lessons would really affect how much time they spent together.

With Dumbledore's ordered issued, Lavender headed back to the Gryffindor table to re-join Parvati, while Ron and Ginny stalked out of the Great Hall together. Knowing that she would have to talk to Harry, and hopefully not lie to him too much, Hermione suggested they took a walk.

"Alone?" Harry asked, glancing at Draco who was still standing at Hermione's side.

"Alone," Hermione confirmed. "I'll catch up with you after I've spoken to Harry," she said to Draco.

Draco nodded and gave Hermione a brief kiss, before re-joining his smug looking friends at the Slytherin table. Left alone with Harry, Hermione linked her arm through his and the pair wandered around the deserted corridors of Hogwarts, subconsciously making their way to the Astronomy Tower, which offered the best views of the frozen school grounds.

"Are you ever going to say anything?" Hermione asked as they sat down at the edge of the tower, their feet dangling in the air.

Even though they'd stayed indoors to avoid going outside in the cold, Hermione was still freezing and she wished she had her coat and scarf with her. One thing was for sure, they wouldn't be staying in the Astronomy Tower for long, unless they planned to freeze.

"How?" Harry finally asked. "Don't get me wrong, I don't think you own Ron anything, and you're certainly free to see other people. But it's rather quick."

"It wasn't like I planned it Harry," Hermione said, deciding to tell Harry the official story of how she and Draco had ended up together, which to be honest was fairly close to the truth of what had really happened over the summer. "I did think my holidays would be spent all alone, thinking about Ron, but I hadn't counted on Draco and his friends. They'd already planned on a party and I didn't want my unexpected presence to ruin things for them, so I told them to go ahead as planned. But instead of just ignoring me, as I thought they would, they tried their best to involve me. Pansy even came to my bedroom and refused to leave until I joined them for a drink."

"Parkinson persuaded you to join the party?" Harry asked in disbelief.

"She did," Hermione confirmed with a nod. "She's really not as bad as she lets people think. In fact, she's really rather nice. Anyway, I agreed to join them for a drink to get Pansy out of my room. But I ended up having a good time and Draco and I kissed under some mistletoe. He asked me out, the next day we went down to Hogsmeade together and we've been together ever since."

"And the sex?" Harry asked with a wince, clearly uncomfortable with asking, but obviously needing some answers. "Did you mean what you said to Ron, about planning on sleeping with him over the holidays?"

"I said that to hurt him," Hermione admitted. "I wanted him to think that he'd almost had me. But the truth is, I never made any big plans to sleep with Ron. And I didn't make plans to sleep with Draco, it just happened. I know it sounds crazy, given that Ron and I were together for months and Draco and I have only been together for a couple of weeks, but things just feel different with Draco. I feel so much more comfortable with him, and I feel as though I'm meant to be with him."

"You love him?" Harry questioned.

"No, but I do really like him," Hermione replied, this time being completely honest with her best friend, and herself. "But I do think I could fall in love with him."

"And you're happy?" Harry checked.

"Very," Hermione answered with a smile, not even having to think about her answer.

"In that case, I approve," Harry said, smiling at Hermione. "All I want is for you to be happy, Hermione. Just be careful. I don't want this relationship with Malfoy to just be a rebound fling and you end up hurt because you thought it was more."

"I'm just taking it one step at a time," Hermione said. "It is what it is. If it's over next week, then I've had the time of my life. But if we're still together in a few months' time, then great."

Feeling better that she hadn't had to lie to Harry too much, Hermione chatted with her best friend for another half hour before the cold got too much for them and they had to move. Harry did invite her back to Gryffindor Tower, but she wanted space from Ron, so she declined his offer and headed back to the Head Dorms to catch up with Draco. She had expected to find most of the Slytherins in residence, but Draco was all alone when she entered the common room.

"Everyone's down in the dungeon's celebrating," he told her when Hermione asked where the others were. "We can join them if they like. Pansy is revelling in her evil plan coming together."

"Maybe later," Hermione replied as she braced herself for what she was about to do. Talking to Harry had made her realise some things, or more accurately, it had caused her to be honest with herself and admit that there was more going on with Draco then just getting revenge on Ron.

"Is something wrong?" Draco asked in concern. "Did you struggle lying to Potter?"

"I actually only had to tell him a few lies," Hermione admitted. "But a lot of what I told him was the truth."

"Like what?" Draco asked, wondering if the truth she'd told would mean the end of their plan.

"Like the fact I'm happy," Hermione admitted. "I like spending time with you, Draco."

"I enjoy the time we spend together as well," Draco said.

"Harry also asked me if I loved you," Hermione continued. "I told him that I didn't, but that I could very well come to love you. That's also the truth."

"What are you saying, Hermione?" Draco asked quietly, not wanting to get his hopes up. From the second they'd started their act he felt as though there was a genuine spark between them, but he hadn't wanted to let himself hope that he might have a chance with Hermione.

"I'm saying that I don't just want this to be an act," Hermione admitted shyly. She'd never put herself on the line quite like this before and she was praying that she'd read the situation right and that Draco did genuinely like her and she wasn't going to end up humiliated.

"Are you asking me out?" Draco teased, grinning at Hermione.

"I might be, are you saying yes?" Hermione retorted.

"If you're asking, I'm saying yes," Draco replied.

"I'm asking."

"It's a yes then. So Hermione, where are you going to take me?"

"Just like that?" Hermione checked. "What about our plan?"

"It shouldn't change our plan," Draco retorted with a shrug. "We carry on as normal in public and no-one needs know that behind closed doors we're only just starting to date."

"And sex?" Hermione whispered, trying her best not to blush, although given their sensual display in the Great Hall earlier she really shouldn't be embarrassed just discussing the delicate topic. "Everyone thinks we're at it like rabbits."

"Let them carry on thinking that," Draco said. "That was the plan after all."

"I don't think I'm ready, Draco," Hermione admitted in a low voice. "It's not that I don't want you, because I do. But we're only just getting to know each other, and technically we haven't even had a real date."

"You don't have to worry about anything," Draco interrupted, placing his finger over Hermione's lips to stop her babbling. "Just because people think we're at it all the time, doesn't mean we have to be. I won't rush you into anything. We will do everything at your pace."

"Even if it takes months before I'm ready?" Hermione checked.

"I'm not Weasley," Draco reassured her. "I won't go looking for it elsewhere. I'm happy to wait for you. I want you, Hermione, and I don't care how long I have to wait. We'll take that step when you're ready, and not a moment before."

"You're pretty amazing, do you know that?" Hermione asked with a smile.

"It has been said, but do feel free to keep telling me," Draco joked. "I have no objections to you flattering my ego."

"But we wouldn't want it getting too big, would we?" Hermione teased.

"Big is good," Draco retorted with a saucy wink.

"You're wicked," Hermione laughed. "Are you sure you'll be able to wait?"

"I can wait," Draco vowed. "But I'll not be able to stop the flirting and innuendoes. You're just so cute when you blush."

"Idiot," Hermione chuckled, aware that Draco's words had caused her to blush. "Now shut up and kiss me."

"Yes please," Draco grinned as he pulled Hermione into his arms and gently slanted his lips over hers, sealing the new phase in their relationship and starting something that would hopefully turn out to be every bit as special as they both hoped.


	7. Chapter 7

Following their decision to embark on a real romance, Draco and Hermione opted not to inform his friends of the change right away. Since the rest of the school already thought they were a couple, there was no need to inform them of the change of circumstances, and they wanted to see if things worked out between them before telling Draco's friends about them.

However, in the end they didn't need to tell Draco's friends as they all instantly picked up on the change between the head students. Even though they'd become friends over the Christmas break, Hermione had wondered if Draco's friends would truly approve of them getting involved for real, but she needn't have worried as they were all thrilled that the pretence had turned real. Pansy in particular was ecstatic about the new development, but neither Draco or Hermione knew that it was because she was pleased that her scheme had worked and that real romance had blossomed, even if it had happened earlier than she'd expected.

As for Hermione's friends, the fact the romance was now real helped ease her guilt about not quite telling them the truth. And thankfully, they were all really supportive and no-one seemed to have a problem with her being with Draco. Or rather most people didn't have a problem. Ginny had barely spoken to Hermione since the start of the term and Hermione knew that the red-headed witch was blaming her for the entire situation with Ron. Although Hermione hadn't made any attempt to talk to Ginny, because as far as she was concerned she'd done nothing wrong and if Ginny honestly believed half of what she'd said, she felt sorry for the younger witch as she had a very twisted view of relationships.

When it came to Ron, it was as though he was invisible to Hermione. He hadn't made any move to approach her again, and for that Hermione was grateful. Maybe in time they might be able to be friends of a kind, but at the moment things were just too raw and Hermione really didn't want to have to deal with her ex. She wasn't even bothered that Lavender had stuck to her guns and refused to have anything to do with Ron, and that her ex-boyfriend was being shunned by the witches of Hogwarts. It was hard to feel any sympathy for him, and the fact his love life was dead for the rest of the year, despite the fact she'd moved on and was extremely happy with Draco.

And Hermione was happy with Draco. Their relationship just seemed to work and they clicked in a way she and Ron had never done. To be honest, Hermione tried not to compare her relationship with Ron to her one with Draco, but sometimes she couldn't help herself. With her and Ron being friends for so long before they got together, their relationship had always been fairly low key and they hadn't really spent much time getting to know each other. It was just assumed that since they'd been friends for six years, they already knew everything there was to know about each other Whereas she and Draco shared stories and really talked about themselves, making Hermione realise that there was plenty she hadn't told Ron, and there were lots of things she didn't know about her ex-boyfriend.

Another major difference was the completability between herself and Draco compared with her and Ron. Truth be told, she'd never had a lot in common with Ron, and most of their conversations were superficial. And even though she and Draco were total opposites in a lot of ways, in other ways they were very similar and they could hold an intellectual conversation. Draco also didn't try and shove his love of quidditch down Hermione's throat, and he accepted that it was an interest that they didn't have in common, where Ron had constantly tried to change Hermione's mind about her attitude towards the sport and blamed her muggle heritage on the fact she held no interest in the popular wizarding sport.

Another aspect of their relationship that was different to the one she had with Ron, was the physical side of it. By the time the couple had been together for four weeks, they still hadn't slept together, but Hermione knew it was imminent and they'd done far more than she'd done with Ron, despite the fact she'd been with Ron for months. However, unlike Ron, Draco never pressurised her and while it had often seemed that the only time alone she'd spent with Ron was when he was trying to get some sexual action, she and Draco were often alone without the topic of sex rearing its head. However, the sexual tension was always bubbling between them and Hermione was always physically affected by Draco's presence.

A case in point was a miserable Sunday afternoon when Hermione was trying to study. Initially, Draco had been content to sit and read beside her, but after an hour he got bored and turned his attention to his girlfriend. Pushing her hair to one side, he began to pepper her neck with soft kisses, and even resorted to whispering naughty things in her ear.

"Draco," Hermione moaned, trying to focus on her Charms homework rather than the heat building in her stomach.

"Yes," Draco replied innocently, although Hermione could feel him smirking against her neck.

"You're very distracting," Hermione muttered, moaning slightly when Draco licked a particularly sensitive spot just behind her ear.

"I do try," Draco returned.

"But I'm trying to work," Hermione protested.

"You're trying to do homework we only got on Friday," Draco pointed out. "Homework, that isn't due in for another two weeks, I might add. You could leave it for today and the world wouldn't end."

Again, Hermione was reminded of the differences with Ron. Ron had also tried to distract her from her homework, but instead of taking Draco's tactic of reminding her that she didn't have to do every piece of homework as soon as she got it, he'd often belittled her need to work hard and more often than not, Hermione had carried on studying because Ron had annoyed her and she hadn't wanted to spend time with him. But she was much more open to Draco's form of distraction and she allowed her quill to fall from her fingers.

"See, I'm much more interesting than homework," Draco smirked.

"I just need a break, it has nothing to do with you," Hermione retorted, swivelling in her seat and wrapping her arms around Draco's neck. "You just happen to be here to keep me entertained."

"And how do you want entertaining?" Draco asked with a chuckle.

"I'm sure you can think of something," Hermione replied.

"I'm sure I can," Draco agreed, pulling Hermione so she was straddling his lap and connecting their lips in a heated kiss.

With her homework forgotten, Hermione lost herself in Draco's embrace and it didn't take long before the couple were sprawled entangled on the sofa. Nor did it take long for the passion to rise, and their clothing to become an obstacle. When Draco slid his hand under Hermione's top and began to slide up her skin she didn't object, but when his hand reached her lacy bra, she stopped him.

"Sorry," Draco apologised, hastily removing his hand. It wasn't the first time he'd had his hand up Hermione's top, in fact he'd even had her topless at one point, but he always backed off when his girlfriend wasn't responsive.

"Don't apologise," Hermione said with a smile. "I didn't stop you because I wasn't enjoying it. I stopped you because I want more."

"How much more?" Draco asked in a low voice, trying not to sound too eager as he didn't want Hermione to think he was pressuring her for sex.

"You know how much more," Hermione chuckled, easily able to hear the hope in Draco's question. "I want you, Draco. Don't you want me?"

"What do you think?" With a smirk, Draco pressed his hips against Hermione's, where she could clearly feel his arousal. "But are you sure?" he asked more seriously. "We can wait you know."

"I know, but I don't want to wait," Hermione admitted. "I want you to make love to me, Draco."

Draco smiled and leaned down to give Hermione a tender kiss. Smiling into the kiss, Hermione wrapped her arms around her boyfriend, but a few seconds later, Draco pulled away and got up from the sofa.

"What's wrong?" Hermione asked nervously. She didn't think she could have done anything to upset Draco, but his departure from the sofa was pretty abrupt.

"Nothing, we're just going to the bedroom," Draco answered, taking hold of Hermione's hand and gently pulling her to her feet.

"Oh," Hermione muttered.

"Your first time is not going to be some uncomfortable quickie on the sofa," Draco informed her. "I want this to be memorable."

"It will be, because it's you," Hermione replied with a smile. Although she was very touched by Draco's consideration, and she had to admit a bed was more appealing than the sofa.

Leading Hermione up the short stairs that lead to the top floor of the Head Dorms, Draco tugged Hermione into his room without even asking her which room she wanted to use. Even though they'd been dating for the last few weeks, Hermione hadn't been in Draco's room a lot, but she wasn't surprised to find it was as neat as a pin. She'd learnt that Draco was a bit of a neat freak, and he didn't like things to be out of place.

"Why your room?" Hermione asked.

"You would rather use yours?" Draco asked. "I can't say I've ever thought about making love on Gryffindor sheets," he mused with a slight frown. "When I've pictured this moment, you've always been spread out on my bed. I guess I rather like the idea of ravishing the Gryffindor Princess on Slytherin colours."

"The Gryffindor Princess?" Hermione laughed at the nickname. "Let's guess, Blaise came up with that one."

"He did, but I think it suits you," Draco returned with a laugh of his own.

"I suppose we go together if I'm the princess and you're the prince," Hermione joked.

"Of course we go together," Draco replied, pulling Hermione into his arms. "Do you want to go to your room? We can if you would be more comfortable there."

"No, I think I'm more comfortable here," Hermione admitted.

"Anytime you want to stop, just say," Draco said as the pair sat down on the bed together. "Even if we're naked and about to do the deed, all you have to do is say and we can stop."

"And that's why I'm sure this is the right thing," Hermione said with a smile. "I know you won't ever do anything I'm not comfortable with."

"I won't," Draco vowed, taking Hermione in his arms and kissing her.

Within moments the couple were settled back on the bed and clothing was slowly removed. Hermione did have a moment's hesitation once she shed her underwear and was naked in front of a member of the opposite sex for the first time, and she couldn't help but wonder how she compared to the other girls Draco had been with. But Draco put her at ease and assured her that she was beautiful and he wanted her more than anything.

"Are you okay?" he checked, noticing that Hermione was starting to tense up underneath him. "Do you want to stop?"

"No," Hermione replied. "I'm just hoping I don't do anything wrong. I've read about sex, and know the basics, but what if I mess up? I don't want to be a disappointment to you, Draco."

"You won't be," Draco reassured her. "And stop worrying about doing something wrong. Sex isn't about studying and knowing what to do. This isn't an exam Hermione. There is no right and wrong thing to do. So stop thinking and just go with it. This is about feeling, and instinct. No book can tell you how to react to this moment. It's unique, and we're the only people in the world who will ever have this exact experience. We're in this together, Hermione, so just relax and have a good time."

Hermione was still slightly worried that she wouldn't compare to Draco's former partners, but she couldn't doubt that Draco genuinely desired her and wanted this, so she did as she was told and relaxed. And Draco was the perfect gentleman, putting her at ease and making sure that she didn't worry too much and that she did relax and enjoy herself. Not that it was too hard as once she was caught up in the moment, all she could think about was Draco and the pleasure he was bringing her. That wasn't to say that there wasn't moments of awkwardness and Hermione wasn't in some discomfort at times, but the passion and pleasure overwhelmed the slightly less positive aspects of the event. All in all it was the perfect first time for Hermione, and afterwards lying in Draco's arms, she knew she'd made the right decision in taking the next step with Draco. A few months earlier she would have thought Ron would be the wizard she lost her virginity to, but after shattering her heart the way he had, she was pleased that he hadn't been part of such a momentous occasion.

"You're not regretting it, are you?" Draco asked, breaking into her thoughts.

"No," Hermione assured him, smiling at her boyfriend. "I'm just thinking how pleased I am that this happened with you."

"You and me both," Draco chuckled. "I can't bring myself to be grateful to Weasley for breaking your heart, but I can be grateful to Pansy for coming up with her plan to get revenge on him. Without it, we might never have ended up here."

"We'll have to find a way to thank her," Hermione agreed. "Who knew embracing your Slytherin side could be so fun?"

"Us Slytherins are very fun," Draco chuckled.

"I know that now," Hermione laughed. "So why don't you show me how fun you can be."

"Again?" Draco questioned, arching an eyebrow at Hermione.

"Aw, is it too much for you?" Hermione pouted. "Do you not have the stamina to keep me satisfied?"

"I'm going to have my hands full with you, aren't I?" Draco laughed, rolling over and pinning Hermione underneath him.

"You wouldn't have it any other way," Hermione purred, teasingly rubbing herself against Draco.

"No, I wouldn't," Draco agreed as the couple reconnected their lips and once again lost themselves in each other and the passion they shared.

While neither Draco or Hermione would ever be able to bring themselves to be grateful for the pain Ron had caused Hermione, they couldn't help but be pleased with how things had ended up. Without Ron's cheating nature they might never have found a way to each other, and they certainly wouldn't have gotten to where they were without the help of Pansy. And the best thing was, in the end Hermione had had the last laugh. There was Ron, alone and ostracised by the witches of Hogwarts, while she was happy with Draco. In this case, revenge was sweet and Hermione had enjoyed every minute of it.

 **The End.**

* * *

 **A/N – I want to thank people for taking the time to read, and especially review, this story, and I hope you all enjoyed it.**

 **I also want to once again thank slytherinflower 26 for the initial idea, without which this story would never have existed. I just hope they like the end result of the story.**

 **I do have another couple of short stories I might be posting this year, but other than if I manage to do anything for Christmas, there won't be a lot more from me this year. As I've already mentioned my writing this year was totally derailed thanks to the ridiculously hot summer and then my laptop dying on me. It means I haven't written half as much as I would have hoped and certain stories haven't come on the way I'd envisioned at the beginning of the year. The third part of the Darkness trilogy will likely be postponed until next year, but I am planning on starting to publish the fourth part of Shattered Trust tomorrow.**

 **So thank you again for reading my stories and supporting me.**


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